Gone pulls you in right away, from the very first page. No, from the very first sentence. One thing I particularly liked about this book, is that there’s not a lot of romance. Maybe it’s because the characters are so young, or because there’s so much going on, but I actually kind of liked the lack of romance in this story. Though I hope there will be more romance as the series progresses, and the characters mature.
The book is told from third person point of view, and it switches perspectives between Sam, the main character, and several of the other characters. I don’t usually like third person POV very much, but in this book it’s just fitting.
Let’s talk about characters! Sam is probably the most important main character. He becomes kind of like the leader of all the kids, because this one time, he saved a bunch of school kids from a bus accident and now they all count on him to be the hero again. Then there’s Astrid, his (kind of) love interest (but that doesn’t develop much until later in the series), who is like, superhot and blond but also a genius. With two other guys, Quinn and Edilio, they form a group of friends. The ‘bad guys’ in this book are Drake, Caine, and Diana, who are from Coates Academy—this school for troubled kids, up in the hills. We also get to read from their perspective, which makes you realise that they are also just kids who go to a different school and make some bad choices, not like, super evil monster people or something.
This book had been sitting on my shelf for a while, and I just didn’t get around to reading it. I was hesitant because of the size (so many pages!), but I’m glad I picked it up eventually. The huge amount of pages didn’t bother me at all, because it’s fast-paced, surprising, and there’s always something going on.
FUN STORY TIME! I got this book a while ago at one of my local bookstores (The American Book Center), and their bargain section is always fun to look...moreFUN STORY TIME! I got this book a while ago at one of my local bookstores (The American Book Center), and their bargain section is always fun to look through, and guess what I found. This book, Why We Broke Up, before the original publication date, for €3. THREE FREAKING EUROS. So I guess they made a mistake or something, because the cashier looked at it funny, and I didn’t say anything because who doesn’t like reading something that (almost) no one else has read yet?! Too bad I was too lazy to review it before it came out though. Okay. The End.
This book was pretty good. I haven’t read any of Daniel Handler’s other books, like The Series of Unfortunate Events which he wrote under the pen name ‘Lemony Snicket’, so this was an adventure for me. The writing was good, not spectacular. Throughout the book, there are drawings and paintings (by Maira Kalman) of the things in Min’s box, which was really cool and completed the book. My favourites were the one of the film roll, rose petals, and condom wrapper. (What? It was a very good drawing, with bright colours, okay.) I don’t like the cover that much though, they could’ve used a much better drawing from the book. I do like the text on the cover, because it looks like permanent marker.
I liked Min, some times more than others. I liked how artsy she was, and it made me excited to start watching weird foreign and/or old movies. But, she was also desperate, insecure, and obsessive, though that’s pretty understandable because she is a teenage girl, and that’s just the way teenage girls act. Their whole relationship seemed kind of fake to me. I immediately knew that Min and Ed weren’t meant for each other. It was doomed from the start (hence the title).
Lastly, who the hell would be crazy & insane enough to write a letter 300+ pages long?! That is just… I don’t even… Okay.
You will probably like this book if you’re artsy in a weird way and like old movies or whatever. It just wasn’t really my thing, unfortunately.
The story follows Lola Nolan, a girl who lives in San Francisco with her parents. She is mostly into designing clothes, not particularly the things that are in fashion though—more the extraordinary, interesting ‘costumes’. She was a very unique, fascinating character and I love how she dresses the way she likes to dress, no matter what most people say about her. (She was insecure sometimes, though.)
Lola has a gorgeous rocker boyfriend named Max, a loyal best friend named Lindsey, and two gay dads named Nathan and Andy, and her life is just going great. Until she finds out that the family who used to live next door to her—the Bells—are moving back in. That is kind of where the story takes off.
Stephanie Perkins, thank you for creating characters, like St. Clair and Cricket, that I want to marry. I will now be forever alone though, because no one can live up to the wonderful fictional characters my favourite authors write about. I read a lot of YA books that had characters that didn’t really appeal to me as much as Stephanie Perkins’ characters do.
And for the people who have read Anna and the French Kiss, a nice surprise: Anna and Etienne are in this book, too. And not just to say hello and then disappear for the rest of the novel, they were actual side characters, and that made me so happy. This book is equally as amazing as Anna and the French Kiss, and I can’t wait for Isla and the Happily Ever After.
I'm not crazy. I don't see what the big deal is about what happened. But apparently someone does think it's a big deal because here I am. I bet it was my mother. She always overreacts.
The book is basically about this fifteen-year-old guy named Jef who tried to commit suicide, so his parents put him in a psychiatric ward to help him deal with his suicide attempt. He has to stay there for 45 days, along with some other kids who have tried to take their own lives. Jeff doesn't think he belongs there, though. He believes he's perfectly fine, perfectly normal — not like the 'nutjobs' in the hospital with him. While he is in the 'nuthouse', as he calls it, Jeff learns more about himself (and others) and why he tried to kill himself, and the crazies start to seem less crazy.
When I picked this book up, I thought it would be something similar to It's Kind of a Funny Story and Cut. It wasn't that much about suicide and depression though, which was what I hoped for (to deal with my own depression). There is actually a pretty surprising twist somewhere in the middle of the book, and some sexual scenes that may not be suitable for younger readers. This is definitely a Young-Adult book. It was a fun, easy read and absolutely hilarious, but it also gets quite emotional at times.
"Jeff's wit and self-discovery are refreshing, poignant, and, at times, laugh-out-loud funny." — SLJ(less)
I heard so many great things about Anna and the French Kiss, so I decided to just—finally—get it. And I’m more than glad I did.
The characters are what made this book so unbelievably good. They are all really well written, very realistic, and I really felt like I knew them. There were not really stereotypical characters, which I really appreciated. I especially liked Anna, and St. Clair, the swoon-worthy love interest in this book. He was born in America, has a British accent (he grew up in England), and also speaks fluent French. Plus, he has a great sense of humour, he seems like a really nice and honest person, and he has a pretty face (I’m assuming). I want my very own Etienne!
Anna and St. Clair travel through Paris together, with him as her guide between classes. There is just one tiny, little problem that’s holding Anna back: St. Clair has a girlfriend.
I loved how it was described so well that I felt like I was actually there, and it made me want to go back to Paris right away.
This book was all kinds of amazing. It was adorable, laugh-out-loud hilarious, and cheesy (but in a good way). It has everything you’d look for in a contemporary romance: drama, relationships, a great love interest, an amazing group of friends you’ll wish were yours, and great writing.
Anna and the French Kiss does a great job in telling a captivating story set in the most romantic city of the world: Paris. Be warned: when you’re going to pick it up to ‘just read a few chapters’, you won’t be able to put it down. Stephanie Perkins is a genius when it comes to contemporary YA. (less)
Perks is one of the first books I read (and immediately after reading added to my favourites) after getting back into reading young adult literature. It is also one of the first English books I read, and it was a great one to start with as someone who wasn’t good at English at all. The writing style is very simple, in form of letters to someone mysterious—maybe even you!
Charlie is a very emotional, socially awkward character and I think a lot of people will be able to relate to him. Though sometimes he is a little bit too dramatic and innocent. Throughout the book, Charlie experiences a lot of new things, learns to cope with the loss of his favourite aunt and one of his friends, and meanwhile, still tries to have some kind of a social life.
I wish I could explain to you how much I loved this book, but words escape me. It’s everything I wanted it to be. It’s inspiring, thought-provoking, interesting, amazing, beautiful… *Sigh* I can totally see The Perks of Being a Wallflower becoming a modern classic. (less)
Ever since seventeen-year-old Grace was attacked by wolves at eleven, she has been fascinated by the wolves that live in the woods behind her house in Mercy Falls. Especially this one wolf, the one who saved her from the rest of the pack — the one who made sure she got home safely. She remembers him very clearly because of his bright yellow eyes. The wolf watches her, and Grace knows that; she calls him ‘her wolf’.
It turns out that the yellow-eyed wolf is actually eighteen-year-old Sam, who shifts between human and wolf form when the temperature changes drastically. In the summer, he is human and in the winter, he is a wolf.
This is not a spoiler or anything, but Grace and Sam meet when he is in his human form. Grace recognises his eyes and finds out that he is her wolf. And surprise, surprise: they fall in love.
At first I was kind of sceptical about this book, because I expected it to be like a little bit like Twilight, but with werewolves. It was much better (he does watch her sleep though, but in a cute way), but sometimes slow-paced and it was hard for me to pick it up again. I thought it was very creative of Maggie Stiefvater to come up with the temperature change idea, since most werewolf stories are about them changing when it’s full moon.
The chapters alternate between Grace and Sam’s perspectives, and further into the trilogy, you will be able to see through the eyes of other (side) characters as well. If you’re hesitant to read this because it’s a little slow (for me), just do it anyway. It definitely gets better and better as the series progresses.
If you’re in the mood for a cute love story with a supernatural twist, I definitely recommend Shiver.
The two main characters are Amy and Elder, and you’ll find out when you read this book, that the chapters alternate between the two characters.
Amy’s mother is a scientist and her father is in the military, and they signed up to be taken aboard Godspeed: a huge spaceship that takes them to Centauri-Earth, a planet 300 years away, where they will build a new world. Amy gets frozen along with her mum and dad while on Earth, so that they will be unfrozen when they reach the new planet.
But 50 years before they’re supposed to land, Amy is mysteriously unplugged—the victim of an attempted murder—and she can’t get refrozen because it might kill her.
Elder is a 16-year-old boy who lives on Godspeed. Then there’s Eldest, who is the current leader of the ship. He is currently training Elder, who will be the future leader of the ship when Eldest dies. And Harley, Elder’s stereotypical best friend, and my favourite character. I really wish I could’ve seen more of him in this book.
Amy and Elder have to find the person who has unplugged Amy, before more and more people will be killed.
What I didn’t like, is that Amy was kind of conscious when she was frozen, and she came out like nothing happened, even though she was alone with her thoughts for 250 years. It reminded me of Rory Williams in Doctor Who, when he was left as a Centurion for 2,000 years, and he was not the same person anymore after that. Same with Amy Pond in The Girl Who Waited (Doctor Who), she even hated the Doctor after she was left there for 36 years. That was kind of irritating, but not a major problem in the book.
I definitely recommend this book to everyone. At first I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read it because it’s sci-fi, but it turned out to be so different from my expectations. Even if you have never read a science fiction book, or don’t like the ones you’ve read, READ THIS! You can thank me later.(less)
I picked this book up because the plot sounded interesting and unique, not like anything I’ve read before. The “acting” stuff was kind of annoying, but maybe you have to be a theater nerd to like those parts in the book, I don’t know. The Fielding/Aaron chapters were good. Charlie’s chapters, however, not that much. And it was a little bit too predictable that they were going to end up together, even when they still thought they hated each other.
The first 2/3 of the book was good, and fun to read. The end was a bit disappointing though, when they do a Shakespeare play. It’s just a little bit too busy and a completely different storyline.
Overall, this was a light and cute read, totally predicable, but good for a boring day or maybe while travelling.
It was hard to get into this book and get used to the writing style. A lot of words are misspelled, and that’s probably because the main character, Todd, can’t read (not very well, at least). It really irritated me at first, but I got used to it. Don’t let the writing style discourage you from reading this amazing sci-fi novel—it really is worth it.
I picked this book up because it sounded so interesting, the fact that everyone can hear other people’s (and animals’) thoughts. I expected something completely different though, but it turned out to be better than my expectations.
I liked how the chapters were short, and most of them ended with a cliffhanger that just made me want to keep reading and reading for the rest of the day.
This is definitely one of my favourite books now, and I’m looking forward to reading the rest of this exceptional trilogy.(less)
What Happened To Goodbye was a great contemporary read, just like every other book of hers.
Mclean, the main character, always changes her personality according to where she just moved, but in Lakeview, Mclean finds herself not creating a new identity but actually being herself. And eventually, she discovers that home is not a location, but it’s the people that you love around you. I really loved the setting; the little restaurant Mclean’s dad is trying to run, and the whole model town thing going on upstairs was interesting and original.
The characters were all so realistic and interesting, and I loved the father-daughter relationship between Mclean and her dad. Deb was one of my favourite characters in this book. She’s extremely organised, which I love, because I’m exactly like that. She’s also kind of weird, but so so so likeable. I actually don’t understand why Mclean’s group of friends didn’t like Deb at first, because she’s actually really sweet and caring and quirky. Dave made me want to meet a boy like him. He—just like every other Sarah Dessen boy —is so charming and cute and makes me feel like I’m going to be forever alone because I keep falling in love with fictional characters and real guys are never going to live up to Sarah Dessen’s male characters.
Sarah Dessen is such a good writer. She basically just takes the same old formula and makes it something new and refreshing out of it. Her writing style is what I love about her. She writes in a way that makes you feel like you’ve fallen into her world, into the story.(less)
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